Magic Mystery
by Jyuoa
Summary: The Mystery Inc. gang attend a music festival in Bellwood. But when strange things start happening, Mystery Inc, Ben's team, and the Hex Girls start investigating and need to come together to figure out who is behind these attacks.
1. Chapter 1

The gang drove down the street. "It was nice of the Hex Girls to invite us to the music festival." Daphne said.

"What's this town located in again?" Shaggy asked.

"It's a small little area located somewhere in Bellwood." Fred told them.

"Bellwood? Isn't that the place with all those reported alien sightings?" Velma asked.

"Alien sightings?" Shaggy repeated.

"It's probably a rumor they made up." Velma told them. "There's no such thing as aliens."

"Thank goodness." Scooby said as the van continued down the road toward Bellwood.

Meanwhile, at the festival grounds, three teens looked as others were setting up tables, stages, and sound systems. "I can't believe they're going be here." A girl with long, red hair said.

"I don't get what the big deal is." The dark-haired boy said.

"Dude, the Hex Girls are her favorite band." The other boy said, a brunette.

"Right." The red head shot him a look.

"It's true, Kevin. Something about their music helps me concentrate." Gwen said.

"Why, because their an all-girl goth band?"

"Because I can relate to their music. And besides, they aren't the only ones participating in the festival."

"You know, I read somewhere that they were pretend Wiccans."

"What?"

"He means that they pretend to do magic." Gwen explained.

"Well, that explains a lot." Kevin said.

"You are such a jerk sometimes, Kevin! I can't believe I even invited you here." Gwen turned around and walked off.

"Wow, you really blew it this time." Ben said, following her.

"Hey, Gwen! Wait up!" Kevin said, catching up to them. Little did they know, they were being watched, and so were the Mystery Inc. gang as soon as they pulled up.


	2. Chapter 2

The group walked around the music festival. "I can't believe how cool this place is." Daphne said.

"It's sort of like when we first met them at Oak Haven." Velma added.

"I wonder if they still practice…" Shaggy began. They group accidentally bumped into a group of girls. "Like, sorry, girls."

"It's okay. I was wondering when you guys would show up." The girl with long dark hair said. She was wearing sunglasses and a trenchcoat. Her friends were also wearing sunglasses, and cover ups to hide their outfits.

"You were expecting us?" Fred asked.

"Of course we were." Another girl spoke up, a blonde.

"We did invite you here, after all." A red head said. It was then Daphne noticed a small purple pendant around her neck.

"Nice necklace." Daphne said.

"Thanks, Daphne."

"How'd you know her name?" Fred asked.

"Because, it's us, Fred." The dark-haired girl lowered her sunglasses a little.

"Oh, hey, girls." Shaggy said.

"What's with the disguises?" Daphne asked.

"We don't want anyone to know we're here." Dusk told them. "Our bus broke down a few days ago, so some of the fans still think we're running late."

"Oh, I see." Velma said. "Guess we'll be seeing you around."

"Bye, guys." Thorn said. As the girls turned to go, they ran into another group.

"You okay?" Luna asked.

"I think so." Thorn said.

"Oh, I'm sorry." A young red-head said.

"It's nothing really." The girl helped her back up. "I'm okay." A few minutes later, the girls made it out of there.

"Gwen! There you are!" Kevin and Ben caught up with her.

"There's something familiar about that girl." Gwen said.

The group finally walked over to a stage where a band was setting up. "Looks like there's going to be a lot of interesting bands performing." Fred said.

"I know, like that girl over there." Daphne said. She pointed to a stage where a girl with long blonde hair in pigtails was playing the guitar. She wore a cowboy hat and was dressed in a cowgirl outfit. She was performing a country song.

"You mean Caroline Star?" Thorn said, approaching the group. "She's our biggest competition."

"What are you girls doing here?" Fred asked.

"Thought we could help with the tour." Dusk told them.

"Are you sure we're going the right way?" Kevin asked as they moved through the crowd.

"Of course I'm sure." Ben said. They joined the group over by Caroline's set. Gwen stopped for a moment. "You coming?"

"Yeah, just…something seems familiar about her." Everyone clapped as she finished her song.

As Mystery Inc turned to go, they ran into the three teens. "Like, sorry about that!" Shaggy said.

"Don't worry about it." Kevin said. "We're used to being knocked down." Everyone stared at him.

"We teach a karate class." Gwen explained, covering for him.

"Nice save." Kevin whispered.

"I used to take a karate class." Daphne said. "It didn't go very well."

"Maybe I could help you out sometime." Gwen said. "I'm Gwen Tennyson. This is my cousin, Ben. The one with the sarcasm is Kevin."

"Hey!" Kevin shouted in defense.

"I'm Daphne. These are my friends Fred, Velma, and Shaggy." A small cough was heard. Everyone looked down to see Scooby.

"Oh, who's this?" Gwen asked.

"This is my best friend, Scooby-Doo." Shaggy told them.

"Nice to meet you." The teens jumped back.

"You're dog talks?" Kevin asked, surprised.

"Yeah, we're kind of used to that reaction." Shaggy said.

"Why are you so surprised? Ship can talk." Gwen whispered.

"Yeah, but this is a normal dog." Kevin whispered back.

"So, where are you from?" Fred asked.

"Actually, we live here in Bellwood." Ben told them.

"It doesn't seem like you guys get a lot of excitement in this town." Velma said.

"You'd be surprised what stuff goes on here every day." Kevin said. Gwen elbowed him.

"It might not seem like much, but things are not always what they seem." Gwen explained.

"I guess we'll be seeing you around." Shaggy said.

"We'll catch you guys later." Ben said. The groups went their separate ways. They had no clue about the chaos they'd all be dragged into later.


	3. Chapter 3

As soon as they left, the group headed over to Caroline Star's set. She had just finished her song. "Wow. That was really beautiful." Daphne told her.

"Thank you. I'm glad that people like my music." Caroline told them.

"You must work really hard at it." Velma said.

"I work hard at everything." Caroline told them. "But I think music's my best shot. I can't explain it, but it just empowers me. Especially when I'm writing a new song."

"Wow, you must be an inspiration to all of your fans." Fred said.

"Please, I'm nothing compared to the Hex Girls." Caroline pointed out. "But, I came here to show people what I've got."

"Well, you have our support." Velma said.

"Thanks." As soon as they walked off, Caroline nearly collapsed.

"Caroline!" Thorn and her friends rushed over to her. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. It just happens sometimes." She brushed herself off and walked away.

"That girl seems strange." Dusk said.

"I'm picking up bad vibes from her. And not in a good way." Thorn told them.

"I don't see why we skipped country girl's set."

"I told you, there's something about her I don't like." Gwen explained. "Until I know why, I think it's best if I avoid her."

"Wow, never thought I'd see you jealous of a singer." Kevin said.

"I am not jealous!" Gwen said. "Really, I'm not."

"Sure."

"You want me to throw you half-way across this field?" Gwen asked, her temper rising.

"Okay, sorry. I just thought…"

"I warned you, you do not get on her bad side." Ben told him.

"How long have you been standing there?" Gwen asked.

"Long enough to hear everything." Ben said.

It was sunset when everyone met up again. A band was setting up on stage. "Hey, guys." Fred said.

"You guys here to watch, too?" Daphne asked.

"Yeah." Kevin said.

"Tomorrow Never Comes is our favorite band." Ben told them.

"I'm embarrassed I even invited you here." Gwen said, turning her attention to the guys.

"Hey, it was your idea." Kevin pointed out.

"Well, you can't always choose who your friends are." Velma pointed out.

"She's got a point there." Ben said. Everyone turned their attention to the stage as the band began to perform. Suddenly, one of the lights started to flicker.

"I don't think that's part of the show." Shaggy said. It wasn't long before one of them dropped, causing the members to jump back.

"What's going on?" Ben asked. Suddenly, a figure wearing a black suit and a mask came out of nowhere on stage.

"Listen up! If anyone stays here, the whole music festival will be cancelled. This is your only warning." As quickly as the masked figure appeared, it disappeared in a cloud of smoke. Not before almost taking the lead guitarist with them, though.

"Chris!" The guys managed to separate them in time. At this point, most of the crowd was running away.

"We should probably get out of here!" Gwen called to the others.

"Good idea." Ben said. They took off running. Mystery Inc. ran in the other direction. Both groups using the crowd as cover, so they could try and figure out what was going on later.


	4. Chapter 4

As soon as everyone scattered, the group came out of hiding. "Apparently, someone's got it in for this band." Fred said.

"Oh, trust me. It's not just us." They turned around and saw the band members that were on stage.

"You okay, man?" One of them asked.

"Yeah, thanks for the help."

"What do you mean, not just you?" Velma asked.

"Over the past few days, during set up, other bands had claimed weird things had happened. That falling light is just one of them. There have been curtain malfunctions, microphones circuiting out. In one case, they found one of their drummers tied up in the ropes."

"Dang, this person either really hates music…" Shaggy began.

"Or someone wants to take out the competition." Fred said. "Literally."

"Looks like we have to take care of this mystery." Velma said.

"Do we really have to do this?" Shaggy asked.

"I'm with them. We need to catch this person, fast." Daphne said. "Otherwise, the Hex Girls could be next."

Meanwhile, Ben and his team were just coming out of hiding as well. "Something seems really strange about this." Gwen said.

"What do you mean?" Kevin asked.

"It doesn't make sense. Spotlights don't fall on their own." Gwen pointed out.

"She's got a point." Ben said. "Let's head back and check out where they were."

"Am I the only one who thinks we're making a big deal out of nothing?" Kevin asked as they walked toward the stage.

"Shut up, Kevin." Gwen said.

Meanwhile, Mystery Inc was already on the stage. "See anything?" Shaggy asked.

"Apart from broken glass, nothing." Velma said.

"Same here." Daphne said, coming out from backstage. The group looked up from where the light dropped.

"No sign of sabotage." Fred said. "This doesn't make sense. How could someone have dropped the spotlight when there's no sign of it being rigged?"

"No idea. But I'm thinking that we may be dealing with something real here." Shaggy said. "Check this out." He was standing near the center, where the masked figure had appeared.

"This is where they vanished." Velma realized.

"In a puff of smoke." Shaggy reminded them.

"But, there's no sign of any smoke bombs or anything going off." Daphne pointed out.

"There is some kind of dust, though." Fred said. He bent down and ran his hand through it.

"I'll analyze it." Velma said. She swept some of it into a small plastic bag. "We should go. We don't want anyone to catch us here." The group headed off so that no one would suspect anything.

A while later, the others arrived. "If this is where the spotlight fell, shouldn't there be like, a crack up there or something?" Ben asked.

"Don't look at me. I don't know anything about stage sets." Kevin said.

"Guys, something is up here." Gwen called them over. She stood near the dust.

"What is that?" Kevin asked.

"Whoever dropped the spotlight must've left this when they disappeared in that puff of smoke." Ben said, catching on.

"Exactly." Gwen said. "I should be able to track them." She picked up a small amount and used her powers. Then she looked up, confused.

"Something wrong?" Kevin asked.

"Yeah, it's just…I'm getting more than one signature. Someone else was here, too." Gwen said.

"So either this person isn't working on their own…" Kevin began.

"Or we're not the only ones investigating." Ben said.

"It's too hard to figure out which way to go." Gwen told them.

"Maybe if you focus on the person who did this, it'll help." Ben suggested.

"I'll try." Gwen closed her eyes and concentrated. "Sorry. It's not working."

"No problem. We'll just have to split up." Ben said.

"How will we stay in contact?" Gwen asked.

"First one to find anything calls the others over, okay?"

"Be careful." Gwen said as he went down one direction. "Okay, we have to go this way."

"I don't get way we're investigating this." Kevin said as they started walking.

"I have a feeling that someone's out to get the band." Gwen said. "Even if they're famous, they are still people."

Meanwhile, the others decided to split up as well. "Okay, we can probably cover more ground if we split up." Fred said.

"Well, let's go, Scoob." Shaggy said. They went in separate directions.

"I hope we can solve this case before another band is hit." Daphne said. "Who knows what'll happen next?"

"Don't worry, mysteries are what we're good at." Velma reminded her.

"We can do this." Shaggy said. "Our friends are counting on us this time."

"Right." Scooby agreed. The two continued down another path. Meanwhile, someone watched from the darkness as the teams split up.


	5. Chapter 5

As Fred's group headed looked back on the stage, there was something missing. "Okay, something's wrong here." Velma said.

"What do you mean?"

"The dust that we collected earlier is missing." She pointed to the ground. The dust was gone.

"Can I see the sample?" Daphne asked. Velma handed her the bag containing the dust that remained. Daphne pinched it between her fingers. Suddenly, it turned pink and disappeared.

"Okay, that's impossible." Velma said.

"Maybe we're dealing with something real here." Fred spoke up.

"Or maybe whoever's behind this doesn't want anyone to pick up on their trail." Daphne said.

"It's also possible the wind carried it off." Velma pointed out.

Shaggy and Scooby were looking around a barn that was near the festival area. "Find anything, Scoob?" Scooby shook his head. "Me neither." He searched under the hay and straw, when he felt something. "Huh? Hang on, this looks like it could be a clue." He pulled out a piece of paper from under the straw.

However, it was too dark to read inside the barn. There weren't any candles or torches hanging on the wall. "We better show this to the gang." Shaggy was saying. Suddenly, something flew, or rather, crashed through the wall and landed in a pile of hay and straw. They ran over to the end where the thing had crashed. "You okay, man?"

Suddenly, a blue cloaked figure emerged from the crash. He put a hand to his head and moaned. Then he turned to face them. They ran screaming out of the barn and nearly into the gang.

Meanwhile, Gwen and Kevin ran toward the barn. The cloaked figure had managed to crawl out of the hay pile by now. "I have got to be more careful on my landing." He said.

"Ben, are you okay?" Gwen asked. The cloaked figure changed back into her cousin.

"Yeah. I found that masked person. He wasn't really in a talking mood, so I tried to fight him."

"And ended up crashing into the barn headfirst." Kevin finished.

"That's not helping, Kevin." Gwen pointed out.

"Anyway, I thought I saw Shaggy and Scooby in here." Ben told them.

"Yeah, we heard them screaming on the way here."

"You think they might have something to do with this?" Gwen asked.

"What do you mean?" Ben said.

"Think about it. Everyone else has left, give or take a few rock stars." Kevin pointed out.

"What's gotten into you two?" Daphne asked after they met up.

"There was some kind of monster in the barn." Shaggy explained.

"A monster?" Velma asked. "What did it look like?"

"We didn't stay around long enough to find out. As soon as it looked at us, we were outta there!"

"I wonder if whoever's trying to sabotage this set is really working alone." Fred told them.

"You think that monster or whatever Shaggy and Scooby saw may be working with that masked phantom?" Daphne asked.

"It's possible."

"Too bad all the evidence we have is this dust." Velma said.

"Not exactly." Shaggy said. He pulled the paper out of his pocket. "I found this in the barn right before that monster appeared."

Velma pulled out a flashlight and read it. "It's an invitation to the Bellwood Music Festival. It's addressed to Caroline Star."

"Who's it from?" Fred asked. Velma tried to look, but the batteries in the light went dead.

"Sorry, guys. Battery's out."

"It's okay." Daphne said. "But if Caroline's in trouble…"

"Not just her. All of the performers and bands could be in trouble." Fred pointed out. Suddenly, they spotted a familiar glow of lights in the distance.

"Then we'd better get the remaining ones here back to their hotels." Velma said. The group took off in the direction of the lights.


	6. Chapter 6

As Ben's Team left the barn, Gwen stood back. "It doesn't make sense. Why would a group of kids sabatoge the acts?"

"I don't know." Ben said. "But I just have a feeling they're up to something."

"I just can't believe they would be behind something like this." Gwen said.

"While you guys are arguing, you might want to take a look at this." Kevin pointed up. There were lights in the sky.

"That doesn't look good." Ben said. Gwen looked up. Then she turned. "Is everything okay?"

"I hear something." Gwen told them.

"I don't hear anything."

"For once, just shut up." Gwen said. There was silence for a few seconds. Then, they could hear faint music in the distance.

"Who would be stupid enough to practice at this hour?" Kevin asked.

"Wait, I recognize this song." Gwen said. "Come on." They all followed the direction of the music.

Hidden near some trees, the groups managed to find a stage area. Three girls were on stage, working on a song. "The Hex Girls? What are they doing here?" Ben asked.

"They always practice at night. It's like a ritual for them." Gwen said. They remained hidden.

Meanwhile, Velma and the others had just shown up. "Any idea on how to get their attention?" Daphne asked.

"Hey, look over there." Velma pointed. There were two shadowy figures hiding near the stage area. "What do you think they're up to?"

"Why don't we ask?" Shaggy suggested.

"Because we don't want them to know we're onto them." Daphne pointed out. "If they are behind this."

"Excuse me." Fred said, approaching the figures. The two girls ran into hiding. At this point, the Hex Girls stopped and noticed them.

"Hey, guys." Thorn said. "What's up?"

"We came to make sure you were okay." Daphne explained. "This masked phantom has been ruining the acts of bands."

"And two of our suspects just ran off." Fred said.

"You mean, these two?" Dusk motioned to two girls.

"What were you guys doing backstage?" Daphne asked.

"We were watching them practice. We're big Hex Girl fans." One of them spoke up.

"Hey, I remember you two. You were at that concert back in Chicago." Thorn pointed out.

"You know them?" Fred asked.

"Look, Sierra, Michelle, you shouldn't be here." Dusk said. "It could be dangerous."

"I know, but I couldn't help it." Sierra told them. "When everyone else ran, we thought we could help by standing guard."

"Look, you two." Luna said. "It's nice that you want to help, but you should leave this to our friends."

"But you will never have the chance." Everyone turned. The Masked Phantom had returned. "This is you're last chance. Leave now or everyone will suffer."

"Fred, I'm assuming you have a plan to get us out of this one." Thorn said.

"Sorry."

"I have one." Shaggy said. "Run!" Everyone ran in different directions. All of a sudden, a scream was heard.

"Did you hear that?" Gwen asked.

"Yeah, we better find the others and get them to safety." Ben said. The group ran off and bumped into Chris. "What are you doing here? You should be long gone by now."

"I got separated from the band. We were about to leave, and we saw this note attached to windshield. The next thing I know, Mike and Jay are missing."

"Don't worry, we'll find them." Gwen said. "Meanwhile, you should hide. That masked guy is still out there."

"Thanks." Chris said. The group took off.

The Hex Girls, Daphne, and Velma, ran into a stable. "At least maybe now we'll have a minute to calm down and figure this out." Daphne said.

"I sure hope so." Everyone turned.

"What are you doing in here?" Thorn asked.

"The ghost came after me." Caroline told them. "I got so scared."

In the forest, the guys came out of hiding. "We should find the rest of the gang. Before that Masked Phantom gets to them." Shaggy said.

"Right." They all headed toward the stable.

Caroline sat down and played her guitar. "So, how's this supposed to help us?" Velma asked.

"Playing it helps me stay calm." Caroline told them. Suddenly, a huge gust blew over, tearing the roof off. The Masked Phantom floated above.

Miles away from the stable, Gwen spotted the wind gust. "Over there! Come on!"

"Back off!" Thorn said, getting in front of Caroline.

"Why don't you, you witch wannabe?" The Masked Phantom replied back. She flew down and grabbed Caroline.

"Let me go, you overconfident creep!" Caroline yelled.

"One more step, and I finish her for good." The Masked Phantom told them. Everyone else entered the room just in time to see the Masked Phantom float off and vanish, with Caroline screaming.

"Caroline!" Everyone yelled.


	7. Chapter 7

"I can't believe she got Caroline." Thorn said, heading over to the group.

"Guess we can cross her off our list of suspects." Kevin said.

"For now, at least." Gwen agreed.

"What are you guys doing here, anyway?" Velma asked.

"We could ask the same thing about you." Kevin pointed out.

"We saw that wind gust and ran over. As you can see, we were too late to help her." Ben explained.

"And you guys are here because…" Gwen began.

"They're detectives." Ben's team turned around to face the Hex Girls. "They solve mysteries. They even helped us get rid of a creature." Dusk explained.

"It's true." Fred walked over. "When that Masked Phantom appeared, we decided to investigate and make sure these girls were safe."

"And so far, everyone who's worked this case has hit a dead end." Gwen added.

"How would you know?" Daphne asked.

"We're working on the same one." Kevin said.

"Are you guys detectives too?" Shaggy asked.

"No, but we always try to help people. And if we let that masked creep just run around here, more people could get hurt." Ben pointed out. "We all saw what happened on stage."

"Wait a minute." Velma got to her feet.

"What's up?" Fred asked.

"We've looked everywhere around the festival grounds, but we never thoroughly checked the stage they were on." Velma pointed out.

"Same here." Kevin said.

"Then we'd better check it out." Thorn said, getting up.

Moments later, the group was checking out the stage area. The guys were checking out the area by the lights. "This is weird." Fred bent down to check something.

"What is?" Ben asked.

"There's no wires attached. When the ghost flew down…"

"Maybe he flew." Kevin suggested.

"And maybe whoever it was took it down to cover their trail." Velma pointed out.

"Maybe." Ben said. The guys walked down.

"There's nothing backstage." Shaggy said, walking over with Scooby.

"We didn't find anything either." Luna said, as she and the Hex Girls showed up. "Except for this weird powder."

"What do you mean?" Daphne asked.

"We'll show you." Dusk said. The group found a small mirror stand with a powder everywhere. It was glowing.

"That's the same dust that we found earlier!" Daphne realized.

"Let me get a closer look." Gwen told them. She ran her hand through the dust. She closed her eyes and nearly collapsed in shock. Kevin grabbed her.

"Are you okay?" He asked. Gwen got back up.

"I'm fine." She told them.

"What happened?" Fred asked.

"Um…allergies." Gwen covered. "I'm allergic to dust."

"But you don't have…" Ben began. She glared at him. "Oh. Right, I forgot."

When Dusk picked up a small amount, it disappeared. "They didn't want to leave a trail."

"So they created some kind of substance to get rid of the evidence." Gwen said.

"This case gets weirder by the minute." Velma said.

"What do you think, Daphne?" Fred asked. He turned around. "Hey, where'd she go?"

"She was right here." Ben pointed out.

"You don't think the Masked Phantom got her, do you?" Shaggy asked.

"She's fine." Thorn said, rushing over. "She's looking around the main stage." The group ran out to find Daphne near the ground.

"What are you doing?"

"If I'm not mistaken, this is exactly where the ghost was standing when she disappeared." Daphne pointed out. "I'm checking to see if there's some kind of trap door hidden in here."

"Are you serious?" Kevin asked.

"Actually, a lot of bands use them now, Kevin." Gwen told him.

"I figured this is how they may have escaped." Daphne explained. The second she stood up, the floor beneath her gave out and she fell in. Everyone rushed over at once.

"You okay?" Ben asked.

"Yeah, I'm used to being danger prone." Daphne told them.

"We're coming." Fred called down. 


	8. Chapter 8

The group found themselves in a tunnel under the stage. Small lamps provided dim lighting. There was a large walkway in front of them. "Where do you think this tunnel leads?" Thorn asked.

"I hope somewhere far away from here." Dusk said.

"Like it matters, we're still going to become targets for anyone who might want revenge on us." Luna pointed out.

"Okay, would you keep it together?" Ben said. "We get that this isn't usually your scene, but we're trying to keep it so that none of the other acts, including you, remain safe."

"Enough already!" Gwen turned around, holding up the group. "If we're going to help, then we have to work together. Let's not start taking out our insecurities on each other."

"She's got a point." Thorn said. Fred started to lead the way.

"Is she always like this?" Velma asked.

"You want to stay off her bad side." Kevin told her. "Trust me." The group started walking.

"I wonder what she's really after." Daphne said. Suddenly, there was a loud bang.

"What was that?" Kevin asked.

"We're about to find out." Fred said. He led the way to where the noise came from. Four figures were tied up unable to move. They were also blindfolded.

"Looks like that ghost wants to take out the competition, literally." Shaggy said. Fred walked over and took the blindfold off one of them.

"Jason." Ben realized.

"No wonder Chris was so freaked when we found him." Gwen said. "He was worried this might happen."

"Where are we?" Jason asked. "Wait, what happened to Chris?"

"He's out looking for you." Dusk said. "What happened?"

"We were on our way back, when that ghost came after us." Jason explained. "Chris got separated from us."

The others took off their blindfolds. "Sarah?" Thorn recognized the girl.

"Amber and I tried to get away, but the ghost girl got us by surprise. I held her off so she could get away and find help." Sarah explained. "I've never been happier to see you guys."

The final girl had her blindfold removed and her ropes untied. "Caroline, you're okay!" Daphne said. "We were so worried when the ghost kidnapped you."

"Do I know you?" Caroline asked.

"You were taken by the ghost? Remember, we were all there when it happened." Gwen said. She grabbed her shoulder. "You okay?"

"I remember someone grabbing me. The lights went out during rehearsal. I felt someone grab my shoulder and then…nothing. Since then, I've been trapped down here until you guys showed up."

"I think I know who's behind this." Velma said.

"So, how are we going to catch this person?" Kevin asked.

"I've got a plan, but we're going to need everyone's help." Fred told them.

"We're in." Ben said.

"So, here's what we do…"


	9. Chapter 9

"I don't know about this, guys." Amber said. She and Sarah were dressed like rock stars.

"It's the only way we'll be able to bring that creep down." Daphne said.

"I don't know." Ben said. "Are you sure this is going to work?"

"I'm with Ben. This plan is kind of lame." Thorn said.

"Look, I know this isn't exactly the kind of thing you guys are used to. But it's the best I could come up with." Fred explained.

"Besides, we've already faced that ghost girl before." Sarah said. "I really don't want to be near her again."

"We can't just let her scare us off. That's exactly what she wants." Gwen pointed out.

"I think this plan will work." Daphne said. "Besides, even if it doesn't, we'll all be here to help take her down."

"She's right, no one's going solo on this." Dusk said. "Just try to be more careful."

"We better head backstage." Thorn said. The Hex Girls headed off.

"The rest of us should take our positions, too." Fred pointed out. The rest of the group headed backstage and hid behind a very big curtain.

"When was the last time anyone ever dusted these things?" Kevin asked. There was a lot of dust backstage. Scooby sneezed.

"Let's try to stay quiet back here." Fred told them.

On stage, Amber and Sarah were pretending to play their instruments. There was a hidden CD player backstage, with pre-recorded music. "How do you think we're doing?" Sarah whispered.

"Everything's working out so far." Amber whispered back.

Suddenly, the Masked Phantom appeared. "I see you've ignored my warning."

"You're not going to scare us off that easy." Amber said.

"We'll see about that." She flew toward them.

"Guys, now!" Sarah called. A huge net fell on top of the Masked Phantom. She struggled to break free. Everyone else ran back on stage.

"Good going, everyone." Luna said.

"You two okay?" Thorn asked. Sarah and Amber nodded.

"Now let's see who's really behind this." Fred went over to unmask the Phantom.

"Caroline?" The Mystery Inc gang gasped when they saw the country singer with light brown hair.

"That's impossible." Ben pointed out. "Caroline was hiding behind the curtain next to the other kidnapped acts."

"Actually, I've been in my trailer all week." They all turned around and saw…

"Caroline?" This time everyone was surprised.

"But if she's there, how is…" Thorn cut off and looked to the side. They looked the same to her.

Then the one from the curtain emerged and walked over to her, along with Jason and Mikey. The group looked between the two Carolines standing side-by-side, then back toward the one who'd been unmasked. Then they looked at each other, thinking the exact same thing: What is going on here?


	10. Chapter 10

"How can there be three Carolines?" Daphne asked after a long awkward silence.

"Hey, thanks for helping her." The first Caroline said. "By the way, I'm the real Caroline. The one standing next to me is my best friend and co-songwriter, Crystal." The girl took off a brown wig, revealing her long black hair.

"It was nothing, really." Crystal told her. "Besides, I kind of had fun pretending to be you. Well, up until the kidnapping part."

"So, you knew something like this would happen?" Kevin asked.

"I received a threatening note to stay out of the contest or be doomed." Caroline explained. "That's when the strange things started happening. Realizing I was in trouble, I called Crystal and asked her to stand in." She handed the note to Velma.

"It wasn't too hard, considering we both play guitar and I helped write most of her songs." Crystal told them.

"But that doesn't explain why she's behind this." Fred said, indicating to the one they trapped earlier on stage.

"I know one thing, however." Gwen said. She pointed to the girl trapped in the net. "That Caroline over there is a total fake!"

"I'll bet she's the one who lured the real Caroline and her friend over here, too." Velma said. "Look at this invitation we found in the barn. The handwriting's identical to this note."

"I had to get her out of the way so I could investigate this contest myself." The trapped Caroline replied.

"And why's that?" Dusk asked.

"It's none of your business!" The fake Caroline yelled. At this point, her voice had changed.

"I know that voice." Ben said.

"What should we do now?" Kevin asked.

"Just follow my lead." Gwen said. "Besides, I know they can keep a secret."

"What happened to your voice, Caroline?" Daphne asked.

"Well, you see…"

"I know who you are. I knew from the moment I touched that dust in the dressing room." Gwen said. "Why don't you just give it up, Charmcaster?" Everyone looked at her. Then, the girl they trapped laughed.

"Well, aren't you the smart one? I should've known you'd be here, Gwen."

"You know each other?" Fred asked.

"Trust me, you don't want to know." Ben said.

"Very well. I wrote the note and took on this country singer's form to disguise myself. When people started that rumor about the set being haunted, I decided to just go with it and create another alias."

"So, you nearly dropped the spotlight on our friend." Jason said.

"And trapped us in that secret tunnel under the stage." Amber added.

"But that doesn't explain how she was able to fly or create that smoke cloud." Shaggy pointed out.

"It also doesn't explain why you went through all this." Ben pointed out.

"I sensed something strange coming from those Hex Girls and decided to investigate."

"Because you thought they had powers like you?"

"Yeah, and to strengthen my own. And I'm going to get away with it in spite of you medalling kids!" An aura formed around the girl. The net broke and she flew into the air, taking on her real appearance.

Everyone except for Ben, Gwen, and Kevin were surprised. "But first, I'll take care of my unfinished business with you." She fired a ball of energy at the group. They all scattered before it left a small burn mark in the ground.

"Everyone okay?" Ben asked.

"Yeah, but we're about to cut it close again!" Shaggy pointed out. Charmcaster landed in front of them.

"And this time, I'll personally make sure none of you survive." She fired another blast into the crowd. Gwen looked up and saw that it was aimed directly at her, just seconds away from hitting her.


	11. Chapter 11

"Gwen, look out!" Kevin said. He pushed her out of the way. "You okay?"

"I think I can handle myself." Gwen told him, pushing him off of her.

"Let's get out of here!" Crystal said. The others ran toward the bushes. Crystal and the other bands ran to safety. The Hex Girls hid near the others.

"This could get dangerous." Luna said.

"Well, we have to do something. We can't just let her destroy everything we worked for." Thorn said.

"One of us has to get her attention, lead her away while we…" Daphne started. Suddenly, Gwen went flying into their hiding area.

"You okay?"

"I'll live." Gwen told them. Shortly after, Kevin and Ben ran over.

"Can we do anything to help?" Fred asked.

"Just stay out of the way." Ben said. "And I suggest you all stand back, cause I've got to stop her." He activated the Omnitrix and turned into Jetray.

"Zoinks!" Shaggy said. Scooby jumped into his arms in surprise.

"It's okay, that's still Ben in there." Gwen said. "That watch, sort of allows him to take on the form of different monsters…"

"So, like, that ice creature in the shed was you?" Shaggy asked.

"Yeah. Sorry about that. Right now, we've got to get rid of her." Jetray flew over to Charmcaster.

"Wait up!" Gwen said. A pink aura appeared in her hands and she tried to help him. Jetray was firing at Charmcaster, but it wasn't going well. Gwen was trying to help, but Charmcaster nearly trapped her.

"This time, you're not getting away." Jetray flew behind her and fired at her back. She collapsed.

"Thanks." Gwen said. The others were watching the battle.

"This is incredible." Daphne said.

"Hang on, I think I have an idea." Velma said. "Thorn, you're a Wiccan, aren't you?"

"Yeah, but you guys already knew that." Thorn said.

"I think I see where this is going." Kevin said. "That witch said she sensed something from the Hex Girls. Gwen's also into the magic stuff."

"Are you suggesting we go out there and fight her?" Dusk asked. "She'll blow us to bits!"

"Maybe not." Crystal appeared beside them.

"What are you doing back here?"

"Thorn, you might practice Wicca, but your real power comes from your music." Crystal pointed out. "Caroline's a real fan of you guys. I couldn't pretend to be her unless I learned about her favorite bands."

"We'll help them." Velma said. "Come on." Kevin ran over to help Ben and Gwen.

"So, what's the plan, guys?" Gwen asked, blocking one of Charmcaster's blasts with her shield.

"We've got help from the others, but we need to buy them some time." Kevin told them.

"Not going to be a problem." Jetray responded. However, Charmcaster fired at Kevin. Gwen rushed to his side. Seeing another blast coming, she put up a shield.

"You're wasting your time, Charmcaster!"

"We'll see about that!" She used a spell and fired at her again. This time the blast went right through her shield and hit her.

"How much longer is this going to take?"

"I think we're about set up." Crystal told them. "You guys ready?"

"There's nothing you can do to take me down this time." Charmcaster said.

"True, but who said I was doing this alone?" Gwen pointed out. Suddenly, Charmcaster couldn't move.

"What's happening?"

"Don't you know never to mess with a band of Wiccans?" Thorn said. Gwen used the opportunity to open a portal behind her. Ben turned into Echo-Echo and used a sonic blast to force Charmcaster in.

"Nice work, guys." Ben told them.

The following night, everyone had gathered to watch the concert. "Hey, sorry we accused you guys." Daphne said.

"Hey, we should be the ones apologizing." Ben said. "You guys looked kind of suspicious to us."

"At least everything's back to normal now." Shaggy pointed out.

"Please, in this town, nothing normal ever happens." Kevin said.

"That doesn't mean we can't pretend that this never happened." Gwen pointed out.

"I'm with you on that one." Velma said.


End file.
